Officials say Angel Flight was headed west to Rome; one body remains in water

By Kristen V. Brown

Updated 11:41 am, Saturday, May 25, 2013

At least two people are dead and another is missing after a small, twin-engine plane crashed in remote part of northwestern Fulton County on Friday afternoon, authorities said.

The plane, a Piper PA 34 aircraft, went down shortly after 5 p.m. Friday, about a half-mile west of the town of Caroga, near the Royal Mountain Campsites, in woods near Route 29, Fulton County sheriff's office and the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The Associated Press, quoting Sheriff Thomas Lorey, said the flight was an Angel Flight, which provide transport for sick patients in critical condition. The plane left from Hanscom Field in Bedford, Mass., and was headed to Rome in Oneida County, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.

Witnesses said the plane appeared to have engine trouble before it crashed, deputies said. The plane at some point broke apart, leaving a debris field perhaps as large as one-square mile.

Police had recovered two bodies. The third body, they said, was trapped under the surface of a large pond. Divers would be sent in Saturday morning to recover it. On Friday, police had not identified any of the victims.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board were on scene Friday investigating the crash. The NTSB will determine the probable cause of the accident. The sheriff's office is handling recovery efforts.

At about 6:30 p.m., the Fulton County Sheriff's Department notified Angel Flight of a report of an aircraft down. A pilot and two passengers were on board.

"Angel Flight NE staff and volunteers are tremendously saddened by this tragedy and we all offer our thoughts and prayers to the families of those affected," said Larry Camerlin, founder and president of Angel Flight Northeast. "Our volunteer pilots are the most compassionate and generous individuals who donate their time, aircraft and fuel to transport patients and loved ones for free to essential medical care that would otherwise not be readily available to them. There are no words that can adequately express our sorrow."

Piper PA 34's have a 39-foot wingspan and reach a top speed of 235 mph.